Color Tones and User Comfort

Color choices play a significant role in ensuring that operators can work effectively without unnecessary strain. In SCADA and HMI design, selecting appropriate color tones is crucial for maintaining user comfort and reducing visual fatigue.

Background Style: A neutral background color, such as light gray or dark blue, can help reduce visual strain. Bright or overly saturated colors can cause discomfort during long hours of monitoring.

Text and Element Contrast: Text should contrast strongly with the background to ensure readability. For example, using white text on a dark background or black text on a light background ensures clarity.

Alarm Color Separation

One of the most vital aspects of SCADA/HMI design is ensuring that alarms are easily distinguishable. Alarms are critical signals that require an immediate response; a poor alarm design can result in missed or delayed reactions resulting to dangerous situations. Here are best practices for alarm color separation:

Clear Hierarchy: Alarms should have a clear color hierarchy. Red typically signals a critical or emergency situation and yellow indicates a warning or non-critical issue. These colors should be applied consistently across the interface.

No Overlapping Colors: Avoid using colors that are too similar for different types of alarms. This prevents confusion and allows the operator to react quickly and appropriately.

Focus on Necessary Information

SCADA and HMI screens often display a large amount of data. To avoid information overload, it’s important to focus only on the most critical and relevant data. Display the most important information prominently, such as system status, alarm indicators or key performance metrics. Avoid overcrowding the interface with unnecessary data points that could distract the operator from the task at hand. Non-essential data or historical trends can be logged for later analysis.

Proportion of Text and Graphic Icons

A balanced use of text and graphic icons is essential to improving the ergonomics and overall usability of SCADA and HMI interfaces. The right proportion of text and graphics helps users quickly interpret data, minimizing errors.

Ergonomics and Ease of Navigation

The ergonomic design of a SCADA or HMI interface impacts the efficiency and comfort of operators, especially during extended shifts or high-stress situations.

Logical Layout: Group related information together logically. For example, monitoring tools, system status indicators, and control buttons should be organized in a way that allows easy access and minimizes the need for unnecessary screen transitions.

Consistent Design: Consistency in design across different screens or system component helps operators quickly familiarize themselves with the interface. Standardized icons, fonts, and layouts lead to a smoother experience.

In SCADA and HMI system development, prioritizing UX/UI design is not just about aesthetics—it’s about creating interfaces that enhance usability, reduce operator errors and ensure safety. Attention to color tones, clear alarm separation, focus on necessary data, balanced text and graphic icons and ergonomics are all essential for crafting effective and efficient user interfaces. By focusing on these key areas, SCADA and HMI systems can significantly improve the operator experience, streamline workflows and increase overall productivity and safety in industrial environments.